Friday, September 11, 2015

Crisp and juicy, Blondee offers uncontroversial flavors in the early harvest.

The surprise? The blond one is a sport of Gala, not the result of breeding. Gala is Blondee's sole parent.

Sports usually entail only minor differences form the parent variety, but I think Blondee goes beyond that.

It is truly its own variety, if not its own breed.Gala is a red apple, but Blondee is entirely yellow or, if early, yellow tinged with green. Some samples have a small faint orange blush on the sun-kissed side.

My samples are large and modestly ribbed, with a slightly tapered shape and other characteristics similar to Gala's. Its flesh is juicy and coarse-grained, a very light yellow. It is sweet with little or no acidity.

Like Gala is it a mild, safe apple, but I find my Blondees to be less rich than my Gala memories. I searched in vain for any sign of the floral flavors I in some Galas. There's no hint in Blondee of its noble Cox's Orange Pippin heritage.

The apple has an appealing texture and is good to eat. However it is squarely on the bland side of things. As early apples go, I find it inferior in both taste and texture to another yellow apple of summer, Gingergold.

1 comment:

I had Blondee pressed upon me when I looked for heirloom apples. Completely underwhelming: sweet. So? I did not bother to check its Brix, but would have been surprised of it had any more than 11%, as there was nothing to compliment or offset it. My samples - from Columbia River side in Wenatchee. WA, 2014 - were translucent pale in color; in keeping with the colorless taste. In fact it was from the same orchard where I'd gotten Karmijn de Sonnaville the year before. Now THAT is an unfair comparison - KdS takes you by the taste buds and won't let go!